The Heart of a Friend
by Jillcb
Summary: After an ill-fated quest, Arthur and the Knights rescue an injured Merlin from the ruins of a castle. As they journey back to Camelot, Arthur fears he will lose the chance, to ask Merlin the questions he's been longing to know. This is a one shot, set in a post reveal era. Thanks to Wil1969 for the lovely book cover.


**The Heart of a Friend**

The bandits had been overcome the falling down castle had finally decended into silence. In normal times that would have reassured Arthur, but not this time. He stormed inside the ruins, sensing the other Knight's following him in. As he thundered through the entrance almost knocking the door off its hinges, he barely recognised his own voice.

"Merlin!" Arthur called out, but all around was silent and for a moment Arthur's heart stopped dead. Where was he? For a moment, Arthur imagined the worst and the bleakness threatened to overcome him. A world without his best friend, the man he was starting to get to know truly for the first time. The mere thought of it pinned him to the ground as he looked around helplessly.

"Do you want us to split?" Leon asked, looking at Arthur for an answer.

Arthur forced himself to come back to reality and lead his men in the way he knew was expected.

"You and Percival go upstairs, we have to find him Leon," Arthur said, trying to keep the nagging fear out of his words.

"Yes of course sire," Leon replied, his arm briefly touching Arthur's in reassurance.

"Come with me Gwaine," Arthur ordered, running towards the corridor in which there was a number of rooms situated. They came to the first one, Arthur kicked the door open with his foot the two of them running in swords at the ready. But to his despair there was nothing but an old cracked table, a fireplace and a half-lit candle burning. The two Knights rushed out and approached the next room, but suddenly a cry from Percival alerted them and they ran towards his voice.

Arthur had never run faster up any steps, in his desperation his feet slipped but he felt Gwaine, steady him from behind. They ran along the corridor until they could see Leon in a door way beckoning them. Arthur flung himself through the door way and to his utter despair he could see Percival tending to Merlin.

"How is he?" Arthur said, on his knees by Merlin's side, watching for any movement.

"Not good, he is knocked out." Percival grimaced, "He has taken a beating,"

"Why didn't he use his magic?" Arthur asked, in despair. Even now mentioning the word gave Arthur a strange feeling. It also brought back bad memories of days apart, while he eventually came to terms with Merlin being a sorcerer. Arthur recalled the conversation he had with him over how powerful his magic was, Arthur had always believed it would protect his friend. But as he looked at the sorcerer's bruised face, he realised that had been a mistake.

"Maybe he was just overpowered," Percival suggested,

"There is reason to think there were a number of bandits here," Leon reasoned.

"With that in mind, should we not leave?" Gwaine suggested,

"Percival bring Merlin, we will work on him in a safer place," Arthur said, watching as the big Knight tenderly picked Merlin up.

Arthur led the way, suddenly alert for anything, there could still be isolated bandits around. The thought helped him keep his mind from worrying for a few minutes. He slowed down as they came out of the castle and into the daylight, looking warily around and listening out for any strange noise. The birds were still singing, which was something that calmed him. Signalling his men to follow him, he made for the cover of the trees a short dart away. When they all reached some good cover, Arthur gathered them together.

"It's not a long walk to where we left the horses. I suggest we make for them and ride on until we get to the Glade. We can find some shelter then, get something to eat and tend to Merlin." Arthur suggested,

The Knights nodded their agreement and then they set off, happy to have a little bit of shelter around them. Arthur and Leon walked at the front swords out ready for anything, Percival in the middle with Gwaine guarding the back of them. Arthur would check on his friend every now and then but Merlin was stock still in Percival's arms. In his mind, a fear was starting to form, what if he didn't come around? They were still a good few days ride from safety. He forced the negative thought from his mind, knowing he had to concentrate for the time being.

The walk was uneventful, save for a brief skirmish in the trees which ended up being a Raven landing nosily. Arthur recognised the stream where they had left the horses to graze and drink. He ran ahead collecting the horses together. Percival had put Merlin on the ground and was looking over him.

"Any change?" Arthur asked, desperation in his tone.

"The good news is, he's breathing okay." Percival confirmed, "But he's taken a big knock on the head, no telling when he'll come around. A lot of bruising around his eye as well. When we stop we need to find some Stickle wort,"

"We will do that," Arthur promised, taking some relief from the fact that he was still with them. "Let's get on our horses and make for the Glade and we can get a bit of rest,"

Arthur led the Knights through the middle of the forest, the cover becoming thicker and the light dimming. They had stopped off at the Glade many a time after numerous journeys. It was a place of quiet majesty with a water-fall and a cave in the middle of a glen. Arthur had lost count of how many times they had sheltered there from the worst of the area's legendary harsh weather.

The ride was without incident with the exception of Merlin's horse briefly breaking lose from Gwaine's hold. Hernish the Mare, seemed incredibly skittish without Merlin on her back, as if she too was worried. Arthur had noticed the bond the two had, Merlin seemed so connected with her, in a way Arthur could never be. To Arthur a horse was just a horse, even though his impressive mount had led him through a number of battles and quests. Merlin though, was a different animal.

He wondered if that was maybe why their relationship worked so well. It seemed each of them brought something different to the other, which somehow made them more complete as people. There was something special at the heart of their friendship and Arthur had realised it from the moment that Merlin's secret, had been brought out in the open. It was only then that he was beginning to appreciate the real man that his friend actually was. He was suddenly terrified that he wouldn't get the chance to discover anymore about what Merlin tick. There were so many questions he still longed to ask him.

He looked over his shoulder at Merlin lying over Percival's horse, he was still and Arthur felt the dread fill his mind once again. He would not lose him, not now when he had the chance to know the real Merlin. The sudden change in weather matched Arthur's gloom as the rains moved in. There was usually talk around the Knights when they were journeying back to Camelot, but the silence only added to the dejection that Arthur already felt. What he wouldn't give for one of Merlin's typical "daft" comments to lighten the mood.

He urged his horse on through the worse of the rain, feeling cold and soaked to the skin as the skies poured down from above. The cloud was hanging so low along with the depth of the trees, that Arthur had to carefully thread his way forward. At one stage, he almost came flying off his mount, but somehow the horse corrected itself and he just about managed, to stay in the saddle. The light around them was getting darker, as the late afternoon vanished and the early evening came to the fore.

Arthur recognised the edge of the Glade, amazed how beautiful the area still seemed even in the middle of the awful downpour. He could sense a storm not too far away and knew they needed to be inside, when it hit. At least now they would get some real cover from the cave, the idea of a lit fire for a moment, calmed Arthur. He narrowed his eyes and remained focussed as he guided his horse through the narrowing of the forest path. He sensed they were about ten minutes away from the cave. As he checked the sky briefly, he knew the weather would be at its worst shortly. Luckily, they arrived even sooner than Arthur had anticipated, he soon saw the cave up ahead and pointed towards it.

"We are almost there," he said, calling over his shoulder.

"Thank the Gods for that," Gwaine muttered, from behind.

Arthur lessened the hold on his horse to slow it down, as the cave approached, he jumped from his mount. The horse briefly tried to get away as a gust of wind came out of nowhere. Arthur just about managed to keep hold of it and calmed him down, patting his mane. By now the other Knights had dismounted and Percival had already made for the cave, lying Merlin carefully on the ground.

"Gwaine, can you take care of the horses," Arthur said, pointing over towards a sheltered clearing. The stream runs down there, tie them up and give them something to eat,"

"Of course," Gwaine remarked, taking Arthur's horse from him and leading him over.

"Leon, what have we to eat? Any rabbit left?" Arthur asked, feeling suddenly ravenous.

"Just some scraps enough for tonight, but we need to get some more tomorrow," Leon replied, "I will heat it up,"

"Gwaine, see if you can find any stickle wort," Percival called, lifting Merlin's head onto a rug that had been laid on the ground.

"Can you do anything for him?" Arthur asked, sitting down next to Merlin and feeling suddenly nervous over the lack of any movement from the young man. As Arthur watched his face, it looked completely void of any colour, the bruise standing out as it ran around Merlin's right eye.

"There is little that can be done, we just need to see when he comes around. He is breathing okay so that is a good sign," the big man said, putting a cloth over Merlin's forehead.

Arthur nodded, not quite knowing what to say. At the moment, he would take any good news if it meant some hope. Not for the first time, he cursed his decision to let Merlin go in ahead of them. He had assured Arthur that he could make it in, without being seen. Arthur had doubted it initially, but realising his friend seemed keen to do it he granted his permission. It had been agreed that Merlin would come back with any news of the numbers of the bandits. Only he never made it back, so they had been forced to move in anyway. Arthur was relieved that no one else had been injured. But the decision to let Merlin go alone, bothered him.

Within a couple of hours, the Knights had eaten what was left and Arthur sat in silence as he listened to the storm and rain lashing down outside. He vaguely listened to Gwaine, Leon and Percival chatting away, but his mind was elsewhere. He briefly thought about Guinevere back in Camelot, ruling alone. He knew she was still coming to terms with being Queen, it had been a big adjustment for both of them. But he knew he could rely on her. She had been instrumental in allowing Arthur and Merlin to get back together, after the secret had leaked out.

Arthur marvelled at how in the end, the truth had begun to bind them together in a way he could not have imagined before. It embarrassed him now to think of how he had reacted and sent Merlin away, when his magic had first been revealed. Their friendship up to then had been natural and Arthur felt he had everything in control. But once he discovered Merlin's true identity the dynamic between them had completely altered. At the time, Arthur had wondered if he would ever be able to accept it. The Merlin he thought he knew ended up being a very different person.

He looked down at his friend's face, come on Merlin he urged to himself, you have to fight this. Somewhere in his head, he could imagine Merlin answering him with a cheeky comment. Merlin after all, had never been conventional even in the early days. The more he had got to know Merlin, the more he felt he knew every little secret. But in reality, he knew there was still much to discover about Merlin the man. The mask Merlin had worn in his early days had been eased away now and for the first time, Arthur had discovered the true man beneath. It had been hard in the beginning, but bit by bit once the sorcerer had been ready, he had revealed his true story. It was a tale which left Arthur both spellbound and horrified in equal measures.

As he understood the true nature of Merlin's sacrifice, Arthur knew there was much he needed to do to make up, for the hardships Merlin had been through. He marvelled at how willing even now, Merlin was to risk everything for himself and Camelot. At times, he had wondered why he'd been so blessed, if only he could have the chance to say it to his friend once again. Arthur lay back, wrapping the rug more securely around the sorcerer. He decided to try and get some sleep hoping the new day would bring some better news. He closed his eyes surprised at how easily sleep beckoned him.

"What day is it?" a voice softly asked,

"I think it's Tues- Merlin!" Arthur laughed. He watched as Merlin tried to sit up, "Lie back, you have taken a knock to the head," He reached for a water bottle.

Merlin's cold hand took the bottle and Arthur watched as he slowly took a drink. He helped him ease back down again.

"We were getting worried about you," Arthur smiled,

"You won't get rid of me that easily!" Merlin laughed, "Anyway what happened?"

"I was hoping you could tell me that," Arthur replied, "You went in first and were going to come out and tell us about the numbers,"

"Oh yes, I do recall now," Merlin grimaced.

"I thought your magic would protect you, why didn't you use it? Arthur asked, suddenly wanting to know more.

"It may surprise you Arthur but even I don't know everything about my magic. I am still learning about this spell it didn't work, the way I was expecting. I thought I could get away without being seen, but something happened and they noticed me," Merlin explained,

"I think you need to do a bit more research before using that spell again then," Arthur cautioned,

"Now, you are starting to sound like Gaius, I get enough grief from him over it," Merlin grinned.

Arthur shook his head, "Will you ever learn Merlin?"

"I will never be like you Arthur," Merlin said, a sardonic grin on his face,

"That's just as well, there is only room for one Arthur Pendragon after all!" Arthur replied.

He joined in Merlin's laughter, before the other Knights came over.

"Merlin, old man!" Gwaine called out, rushing over to embrace him,

"Not so much of the old Gwaine please," Merlin grunted, "though I do feel a bit fragile at the moment,"

"It's good to see you've come around," Percival smiled, "Now you need some rest,"

"I think you all do, I will take the last watch," Arthur commanded.

A few minutes later Arthur was outside and soaked to the skin, but for once he didn't care. He smiled to himself, knowing there would still be a few more adventures for him, Merlin and the Knights. He made a silent toast to his friend as the darkness turned to daylight once more.

**The End.**


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